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Too Easy???

Took the big plunge today - changed the oil and the oil and transmission filters. I have been using this site to try to figure out how hard it was going to be, and I wasn't quite sure what to expect. Took about three hours start to finish! I don't want to brag, but I didn't think it was really all that hard. Maybe I thought it would be harder because I had never done it before. The 6mm drain plug was tighter than it needed to be, I about broke my arm when it finally broke loose. Thanks to BajaRon for both filters and Orings, everything worked like it was made for it. I did make a little mess removing the trans filter, next time I'll put a few paper towels under the filter(Duh!!) to keep the oil from running all into the area under the filter, and then dripping on the driveway.

Anyway, with the oil and filters now changed, the weather can now officially get colder, but only if it wants to. I have been perfectly happy to ride to work every day with the temps in the morning in the 20s, and 40s or 50s in the afternoon. I will continue to ride to work until it snows (possibly Wed!)or until I get tired of my fingertips being frozen on the morning ride. I really like my Spyder!!

PLUG REMOVAL TIP

Originally Posted by Bill W.

Took the big plunge today - changed the oil and the oil and transmission filters. I have been using this site to try to figure out how hard it was going to be, and I wasn't quite sure what to expect. Took about three hours start to finish! I don't want to brag, but I didn't think it was really all that hard. Maybe I thought it would be harder because I had never done it before. The 6mm drain plug was tighter than it needed to be, I about broke my arm when it finally broke loose. Thanks to BajaRon for both filters and Orings, everything worked like it was made for it. I did make a little mess removing the trans filter, next time I'll put a few paper towels under the filter(Duh!!) to keep the oil from running all into the area under the filter, and then dripping on the driveway.

Anyway, with the oil and filters now changed, the weather can now officially get colder, but only if it wants to. I have been perfectly happy to ride to work every day with the temps in the morning in the 20s, and 40s or 50s in the afternoon. I will continue to ride to work until it snows (possibly Wed!)or until I get tired of my fingertips being frozen on the morning ride. I really like my Spyder!!

.... I lovvvvvvvvvve DIY'ers ... The next time you do this, after putting the Torx or Hex socket in the plugs give it a sharp Tap ( or two )with a Hammer .....this should brake the Varnish coating ( that forms with hot oil ) .....and to make sure you aren't tightening the Plug , set your ratchet to loosen mode before you put it in the plug .... Mike

ratchet -- loose setting

[QUOTE=BLUEKNIGHT911;1320072] .... I lovvvvvvvvvve DIY'ers ... The next time you do this, after putting the Torx or Hex socket in the plugs give it a sharp Tap ( or two )with a Hammer .....this should brake the Varnish coating ( that forms with hot oil ) .... -------> .and to make sure you aren't tightening the Plug , set your ratchet to loosen mode before you put it in the plug .... Mike <----- are you talking about a torque wrench ?

Good for you

Good for you! I'm not a mechanic, but I no look forward to doing work on my bike and with add-ons and other tasks. I'm finding my RT to be one of the most enjoyable bikes I've ever had to work on.

Rob

Originally Posted by Bill W.

Took the big plunge today - changed the oil and the oil and transmission filters. I have been using this site to try to figure out how hard it was going to be, and I wasn't quite sure what to expect. Took about three hours start to finish! I don't want to brag, but I didn't think it was really all that hard.

2015 RT-Ltd SE6 and F3S SE6, both with a number of commercial add-ons plus my own tweaks.

Gozfast, Lew L and others mentioning the mirrors --- >>>> Magic Mirrors makes this a long forgotten issue, ANYONE can put them on and removing (and replacing) mirrors has never been easier. You deserve a Christmas Stocking stuffer, get them direct or or through some of our other site sponsors...

Bill W. congrats and welcome to the DIYer's... I did get a small breaker bar for my oil changes, makes it so much easier to give it a rap before breaking it loose and removing those bolts.

Looking to do this job on my 2010 RT Se5

I'm also going to do an oil change on my 2010, but I have a question about the HCM filter. From what I understand, there are two versions of the filter and housing. One is "extended" and longer and the other is the OEM. I think my bike still has the OEM version. Looking online at one posting back from 2015, BajaRon stated:

The 'Extended' is a bit misleading. People were running 5000 miles plus on their Spyders long before BRP upgraded their filters and called them 'Extended'.

As far as I know there have been zero filter related issues with the aftermarket products. I have personally run 6,400 miles (SM5) and I know others who have run farther than that with their SE5 on aftermarket filters. All of the problems occurred with the original BRP filters.

It was the BRP OEM engine and transmission filters which were failing at these longer distances. So the 'Extended' service interval is only in comparison to the original BRP filters. Not with the much better made aftermarket filters.

The current BRP filters are a much better product and I have heard of zero filter related issues. But the same can be said for the aftermarket filters as well, including the shorter transmission filter. Many retained the short cap and continue to run the short filter. They are not only much less expensive, but also much easier to find.

So should I try and get the larger filter cap and get the kit with the extended filter or stick with the kit with the original transmission filter? It doesn't sound like there is that much difference in performance or longevity, but I'm just figuring this stuff out. Also, what brand of MC oil are folks using (full synthetic). Thanks in advance.

Bob

PS. Any pics of the difference between the two filters would be appreciated.

THAT IS VERY

interesting. I also have a 2010 RT SE, my transmission filter is the larger one and this was done by the dealer as a "recall" item"!!!!!

Originally Posted by Eviltwin

I'm also going to do an oil change on my 2010, but I have a question about the HCM filter. From what I understand, there are two versions of the filter and housing. One is "extended" and longer and the other is the OEM. I think my bike still has the OEM version. Looking online at one posting back from 2015, BajaRon stated:

The 'Extended' is a bit misleading. People were running 5000 miles plus on their Spyders long before BRP upgraded their filters and called them 'Extended'.

As far as I know there have been zero filter related issues with the aftermarket products. I have personally run 6,400 miles (SM5) and I know others who have run farther than that with their SE5 on aftermarket filters. All of the problems occurred with the original BRP filters.

It was the BRP OEM engine and transmission filters which were failing at these longer distances. So the 'Extended' service interval is only in comparison to the original BRP filters. Not with the much better made aftermarket filters.

The current BRP filters are a much better product and I have heard of zero filter related issues. But the same can be said for the aftermarket filters as well, including the shorter transmission filter. Many retained the short cap and continue to run the short filter. They are not only much less expensive, but also much easier to find.

So should I try and get the larger filter cap and get the kit with the extended filter or stick with the kit with the original transmission filter? It doesn't sound like there is that much difference in performance or longevity, but I'm just figuring this stuff out. Also, what brand of MC oil are folks using (full synthetic). Thanks in advance.

Bob

PS. Any pics of the difference between the two filters would be appreciated.

Took the big plunge today - changed the oil and the oil and transmission filters. I have been using this site to try to figure out how hard it was going to be, and I wasn't quite sure what to expect. Took about three hours start to finish! I don't want to brag, but I didn't think it was really all that hard. Maybe I thought it would be harder because I had never done it before. The 6mm drain plug was tighter than it needed to be, I about broke my arm when it finally broke loose. Thanks to BajaRon for both filters and Orings, everything worked like it was made for it. I did make a little mess removing the trans filter, next time I'll put a few paper towels under the filter(Duh!!) to keep the oil from running all into the area under the filter, and then dripping on the driveway.

Anyway, with the oil and filters now changed, the weather can now officially get colder, but only if it wants to. I have been perfectly happy to ride to work every day with the temps in the morning in the 20s, and 40s or 50s in the afternoon. I will continue to ride to work until it snows (possibly Wed!)or until I get tired of my fingertips being frozen on the morning ride. I really like my Spyder!!

Thanks for sharing Bill. Iíd like to do my own oil change on our 16 RT. Iím not very mechanically inclined, but I used to change the oil on my car many years ago.
i think Iíll do the next change myself.

Like a lot of people have said, the hardest part is removing the proper panels to get to what you want to do. It all starts with one or both of the mirrors. Now that I am a seasoned veteran of Spyder maintenance(HA!!), the mirrors come off in a couple of seconds. For me, the second hardest part was getting the Spyder in the air high enough so that I could get under it to actually see the two drain plugs. I'm a visual learner, I have to see something being done in order to do it myself. Thank Goodness for YouTube and SpyderLovers!! Now that I know where everything is at, the next oil change will be cake.

To those out there who are on the fence about oil and filter changes, I look at it this way - you can pay the local dealer the $200-300 to do what you are perfectly capable of doing yourself, with the proper tools and equipment, of course. Or, you can get the job done yourself, with all of the satisfaction and pride and whatever else I can't think of right now. You'll learn about your Spyder, and be more involved in the maintenance aspect of ownership. I'm all about saving money if I can do it myself, and this last weekend was a huge boost to my self-esteem!

I'm also going to do an oil change on my 2010, but I have a question about the HCM filter. From what I understand, there are two versions of the filter and housing. One is "extended" and longer and the other is the OEM. I think my bike still has the OEM version. Looking online at one posting back from 2015, BajaRon stated:

The 'Extended' is a bit misleading. People were running 5000 miles plus on their Spyders long before BRP upgraded their filters and called them 'Extended'.

As far as I know there have been zero filter related issues with the aftermarket products. I have personally run 6,400 miles (SM5) and I know others who have run farther than that with their SE5 on aftermarket filters. All of the problems occurred with the original BRP filters.

It was the BRP OEM engine and transmission filters which were failing at these longer distances. So the 'Extended' service interval is only in comparison to the original BRP filters. Not with the much better made aftermarket filters.

The current BRP filters are a much better product and I have heard of zero filter related issues. But the same can be said for the aftermarket filters as well, including the shorter transmission filter. Many retained the short cap and continue to run the short filter. They are not only much less expensive, but also much easier to find.

So should I try and get the larger filter cap and get the kit with the extended filter or stick with the kit with the original transmission filter? It doesn't sound like there is that much difference in performance or longevity, but I'm just figuring this stuff out. Also, what brand of MC oil are folks using (full synthetic). Thanks in advance.

Bob

PS. Any pics of the difference between the two filters would be appreciated.

The longer filter came in the oil change kits for a couple years. There should be a sticker on the oil tank to show if it has the longer filter.

Like a lot of people have said, the hardest part is removing the proper panels to get to what you want to do. It all starts with one or both of the mirrors. Now that I am a seasoned veteran of Spyder maintenance(HA!!), the mirrors come off in a couple of seconds. For me, the second hardest part was getting the Spyder in the air high enough so that I could get under it to actually see the two drain plugs. I'm a visual learner, I have to see something being done in order to do it myself. Thank Goodness for YouTube and SpyderLovers!! Now that I know where everything is at, the next oil change will be cake.

To those out there who are on the fence about oil and filter changes, I look at it this way - you can pay the local dealer the $200-300 to do what you are perfectly capable of doing yourself, with the proper tools and equipment, of course. Or, you can get the job done yourself, with all of the satisfaction and pride and whatever else I can't think of right now. You'll learn about your Spyder, and be more involved in the maintenance aspect of ownership. I'm all about saving money if I can do it myself, and this last weekend was a huge boost to my self-esteem!

Just out of curiosity, what is high enough? I suspect that the height can vary based on how big the person is and their limberness so looking for a ballpark figure.

+10 on removing/replacing thew body panels. I was working on mine last week. Got cut twice by sharp edges, and somehow smashed a finger bloody. That plastic gets slippery when your fingers are bleeding.

I used to complain about removing about 2 dozen screws to pull the Tupperware on my BMW RT, but once the screws were out, it was stupid simple to handle the Tupperware. I'm not at all comfortable with the Spyder's "just give it a good, solid tug" to remove and "just a little more pressure" to reinstall. I'm afraid I'm gonna split a panel one of these days.

My vote for a new Spyder is to keep the frame and drive train, and figure out something better for working with the Tupperware.

Just out of curiosity, what is high enough? I suspect that the height can vary based on how big the person is and their limberness so looking for a ballpark figure.

Thx

My driveway is sloped just enough that when I drive the front wheels onto 8.5" high ramps, the Spyder is still pretty level. That's high enough for me to stick my head underneath to see what the heck I'm doing. Plus it gets everything up off the ground a little higher so it's easier to remove panels, etc. I don't bend at the waist like I used to!!